Sunday, January 3, 2016

The Impossibles and The Incredibles



I only remember watching The Impossibles a few times as a kid.  I recall liking what I saw though, they had power sets that I had not seen on other cartoons and I was a sucker for anything super-hero related.  It was not until many years later looking back upon the property that I realized they were loosely based on The Three Stooges!

18 comments:

AirDave said...

I've only seen The Impossibles in a '90's Hanna-Barbera comic. The cartoon must have been very short-lived...and maybe didn't catch on. I saw more Ricochet Rabbit; that father-son dog cartoon and the Three Musketeers...

Anonymous said...

Well "Rally-ho-ho-ho" - as Fluid-man would say. Thanks for bringing back a memory of the days when Saturday mornings were really fun. Frankenstein Jr., Moby Dick and the Mighty Mightier, Spaceghost, The Herculoids, Super Six!

TC said...

Wikipedia says that "Frankenstein Jr. and the Impossibles" ran for two seasons (1966-68), although I only remember it running for one.

As I recall, each half-hour episode had three segments, two Frankenstein Jr. cartoons and one with the Impossibles. There was a one-shot 1966 Gold Key comic that followed the same format. IIRC, though, that 1990's "Hanna-Barbera Presents..." comic book had a crossover story that teamed up the Impossibles with Frankie.

Fun fact: originally, H-B planned to call the team "The Incredibles," but the name was changed at the last minute.

In their civilian identities, the Impossibles were a rock band. They seemed to be agents for an FBI/Secret Service-type organization, and received assignments from its director, who was code named "Big D." In the 1960's, the biggest fads were James Bond, Batman, and the Beatles. The Impossibles emulated all three.

Anonymous said...

I have a vague memory of another cartoon starring very old superheroes who had been called back from retirement after something happened to Superman, Spider-Man etc. Anyone remember what it was called?

Carycomic said...

@Air Dave: "Frankenstein Jr. and the Impossibles" ran for two seasons (on NBC, I believe) during the mid-Sixties. And they were as much influenced by the Monkees as the Three Stooges (hence, their civilian ID's as a rock band).

And, once again, Ross, you have created a team-up worthy of a real-world crossover being published. For one thing, I can just see Violet getting abducted while attending an Impossibles reunion tour concert!

Simreeve said...

Not only do I have fond memories of watching The Impossibles back in the '60s, but only a few days ago I started wondering whether you'd ever featured them here.

Thank you.

^_^

Anonymous said...

You may possibly be thinking of Tyrone from Baggy Pants and the Nitwits http://m.youtube.com/watch?v=i3_l3N_QVk0 a cartoon from the studio that made the Pink Panther from 1977 and repeats...

Gerson B said...

This crossover I really would love to see!

X7 said...

It was two Impossible cartoons to one Frankie, Jr cartoon. The were far more influenced by the Beatles than the Monkees or the Three Stooges, since the cartoon would have been in production about the same time as the Monkees and there was far more superhero type action than slapstick violence like the Stooges employed so excellently.
They are far more original than the Incredibles ripoff of the Fantastic Four...

Ideas Man said...

The best thing about the Incredibles was Edna the superhero costume designer's dismissive comment"Supermodels. Nothing super about them."

Anonymous said...

Actually, the Incredibles was also notable for showing a world where superheroes were not only for real. But, also, legally suppressed by a misguidedly fearful public! So, in a way, Disney/Pixar might've been "testing the waters" when it came to the box office appeal of a live-action movie based on a similar theme (i.e, Marvel's now-classic "Civil War" story arc).

Bird of Paradise said...

The Impossibles and the Incredibles jioning forces t do battle against Professor Stretch and Syndrome

Swifty the Spacebird said...

Frankenstein Jr and The Mighty Orbots how dose that sound?

Anonymous said...

Next up? The Impossibles meet Kim Possible!

Anonymous said...

P.S.---the Incredibles are more sequel worthy than the Fantastic Four with the Black Torch.

Spurwing Plover said...

Next up The Mighty Hero's meet the Inferior Five

Tito-Mosquito said...

I'll bet Violet is a big fan of the band, and will freak when they save her. XD

Whipoorwill said...

I just got Frankenstien Jr and the impossibles on DVD

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